Story 12: The Bear Who Taught the Wind (A Story from Canada)
In the vast, wild lands of Canada, where deep green forests stretched for miles and sparkling lakes reflected the sky, lived a little boy named Finn. Finn loved the winter, with its soft, falling snow and the exciting tracks animals left behind. But he always worried about his animal friends when the cold winds came.
The animals in the forest also worried. “Brrrr,” shivered the little Squirrel. “The Wind Spirit is blowing so hard this year! Soon, all our berries will be frozen, and our den will be too cold.”
The Wind Spirit was a mighty force, invisible but powerful. It would rush through the trees—WHOOSH! ROAR!—making branches dance and snow swirl. Sometimes, it blew so hard it broke young trees and made everyone very uncomfortable.
Finn remembered his grandfather’s stories. “The Wind Spirit has a heart, Finn,” his grandfather would say. “Sometimes it just needs to be reminded to be gentle.”
One crisp morning, Finn ventured into the snowy forest, wearing his warmest hat and mittens. He walked deeper and deeper, listening to the wind howl around him. He wanted to find a way to ask the Wind Spirit to be a little kinder.
As he walked, he came across a huge, furry Bear. The Bear was wide awake, not yet ready for his long winter sleep. He was trying to push a fallen log out of a stream, but the wind kept blowing snow in his eyes and making him slip.
Finn watched for a moment, then walked over. “Hello, Great Bear,” Finn said politely. “The Wind Spirit seems very strong today. It makes it hard to work, doesn’t it?”
The Bear sighed, a puff of white air coming from his nose. “Indeed, little human. The Wind Spirit is strong, but sometimes it forgets that strength isn’t always about making noise. Sometimes, it’s about being still and helping quietly.”
Suddenly, the Bear looked up. He didn’t growl at the wind. He didn’t try to fight it. Instead, he did something surprising. He sat down very, very still. He closed his eyes. He listened to the wind’s roar. And then, he took a deep, slow breath, and let it out very, very gently—WHOOSH… ssshhh… like a soft sigh.
He repeated this: a deep breath in, and a very gentle, quiet breath out. He did it again and again, like a slow, peaceful dance.
And something amazing happened. As the Bear breathed, the powerful Wind Spirit began to slow down. The loud ROAR! became a softer whoosh. The whipping branches started to sway gently. The snow stopped swirling wildly and began to fall in soft, silent flakes—pitter-pat, pitter-pat.
Finn watched, amazed. The Bear wasn’t fighting the wind; he was showing it how to be calm. The Bear was teaching the wind to breathe gently.
When the wind was just a soft whisper, the Bear opened his eyes. “You see, Finn?” he rumbled softly. “Even the biggest, strongest things can learn to be gentle. Sometimes, you don’t fight the storm. You show it how to be peaceful.”
Finn went home with a warm feeling in his heart. He told his village what the Bear had taught the wind. From that day on, when the winter winds grew too strong, the villagers would take a deep breath, like the Bear, and remember to send out a gentle thought. And often, the wind would seem to calm, just a little.
Finn learned that the biggest lessons often come from the quietest teachers, and that even the wildest parts of nature can be touched by a gentle heart.
Review The Magic Passport Story 12.